The new tyres reduce the CO2 output of Qashqais in Acenta Premium Pack, N-Connecta and N-Vision specs by 4g/km, but reduces the emissions of the dCi 130 2WD Xtronic by 6g/km. All of the spec levels which have been subject to the tweak have also had their benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax bands reduced by 1%.

In addition to this, the vehicle excise duty (VED) of DIG-T 115 2WD manual, DIG-T 115 2WD Xtronic and dCi 130 4WD manual have also been downgraded, meaning a £130 saving per year for each.

A Nissan spokesman was unavailable to comment whether the tyres are more expensive than those they replace, or if models with other sizes of alloy may benefit from a similar tyre down the line.

Great , I cannot wait to get stuck behind one of these when we get 1 mm of snow in hilly Sheffield....

How about a manufacturer giving me an option of sodding all weather tyre?

The only car I see on my shopping list for next years Golf replacement that does this is the Porsche Macan (and sadly I cannot afford a macan - its only on the list for a bit of fun)

Have you anything to back up your claim that low rolling resistance tyres have worse cold/ snow performance than standard fit summer tyres?
Anyone with any sense worried about grip in the winter months does not buy all season tyres but buys a set of wheels for winter fitted with proper winter tyres. Far better in cold wet, below 7 degrees, conditions for grip and braking for little cost considering that your summer tyres are only used for about 7 months and winters five months.

It's pretty well established that modern summer tyres are nigh on useless on a gradient with even a few mm of snow (Sheffield grinds to a halt several times a year). This applies to stopping and going. It is my assumption that the drive to longer life /lower emissions and noise etc have only made this worse.

Yes I do buy winter tyres and have done so for 10 years. I am a snow tyre evangelist.

However a good all season (eg Michelin crossclimate) is now good enough with little or no compromises and it saves the chuffing about changing them twice a year.

My bugbear is on an urban suv/crossover I should at least be given the option of a tyre choice when dropping twenty grand and up on a new car!

How about a manufacturer giving me an option of sodding all weather tyre?

The only car I see on my shopping list for next years Golf replacement that does this is the Porsche Macan (and sadly I cannot afford a macan - its only on the list for a bit of fun)

I'm confused. Are you seriously suggesting you won't buy a car unless it has the tyres you want? What about buying any car you want then going down to a tyre store, spending £500 or whatever and buy the tyres you like for it?

How do you think manufacturers sell cars in colder climates? Do you think those customers get a choice? By law those countries tell you must have seperate tyres for summer/winter use. Why should you be any differnet than the rest of the world? If you want winter tyres then buy winter tyres.

Don't forget the lower VED rates will only affect vehicles sold before April next year. And the real world fuel savings will most likely be negligible because the lower rolling resistance only affects low speed running such as that used within the EU test.

My comment was a slight approximation. The crossover point where aerodynamic drag becomes predominant over rolling resistance occurs at around 50mph. And because aerodynamic drag goes up with the cube of speed, you can pretty much ignore rolling resistance at higher speeds. The above explains why huge horsepower is needed to achieve very high speeds (roughly 8 timers the power required to reach 200mph versus 100 mph)and why fuel consumption inevitably plummets at speed.

My comment was a slight approximation. The crossover point where aerodynamic drag becomes predominant over rolling resistance occurs at around 50mph. And because aerodynamic drag goes up with the cube of speed, you can pretty much ignore rolling resistance at higher speeds. The above explains why huge horsepower is needed to achieve very high speeds (roughly 8 timers the power required to reach 200mph versus 100 mph)and why fuel consumption inevitably plummets at speed.

Most people's average speed is under 50mph for journey to work. To sum up it saves fuel all the time, less so at 50mph. Therefore it's a saving all the time. p.s. they're usually quieter too.

To slightly clarify LP's comments, although the aerodynamic drag goes up with the cube of speed, fuel consumption approximately goes up with its square, as you are travelling further in a given time period at a higher speed.